By the late 1950s, tension dominated relations between the United States and the Soviet Union. While the two superpowers differed on many issues, there was none more pressing than that of the status of Berlin. At the end of the World War II, the British, French, American and Soviet armies divided up not only the defeated Germany between them, but also its capital city of Berlin. The year 1949 saw the creation of the nation states of West Germany and East Germany. West Berlin became a part of West Germany, even though it existed hundreds of miles within the East German state.
This presented a major problem for the East German government and by extension its patron, the USSR. Millions of East Germans began to flee to the west, and the easiest way in which this was accomplished was by simply going to East Berlin, crossing the boundary into the West Berlin, and taking a flight to a West German city. Though the East German secret police, the Stassi, attempted to stop such escapes, they became remarkably common.
The Republikflucht, or republic flight, as the issue was known, became a major embarrassment for the East German state. First of all, it illustrated dramatically that given a choice between a communist system or a free-market democratic system, many people would choose the latter. Also, the people fleeing East Germany were by and large its educated and skilled classes, those who knew that they could enjoy a much better standard of living in the West.
Increasingly, East Germany's communist chancellor, Walter Ulbricht, put pressure on Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev to solve the problem. It was a case of the tail wagging the dog, as the Soviet leader and politburo desperately attempted to work out a solution and stop the bleeding.
Technically, East Berlin was still administered by the Soviet Union, just as West Berlin was administered by Britain, France and the USA. In line with earlier proposals from Ulbricht, Khrushchev decided to give the West an ultimatum in November 1958. Khrushchev stated that he would hand over control of East Berlin to the East German government, effectively voiding the Potsdam agreements which gave the West access to West Berlin. He urged the United States to come to its own agreements with the East German government rather than have a potentially dangerous situation develop over Berlin.
The West, however, had other ideas. To President Dwight D. Eisenhower and America's European allies, there was no negotiation over the status of Berlin. American blood had been shed defeating Nazi Germany, and American industry had powered the Red Army in the war. The West was not going to give up Berlin under any circumstances, and if indeed the Soviets handed control of Berlin over to East Germany, America and its allies would not allow an abridgment of their control over the western part of the city.
In order to help arrive at some common ground on the issue, and other issues of interest to the USA and the USSR, Khrushchev used diplomatic channels to let Eisenhower know that he'd like to visit America for informal talks in 1959, with an invitation for Eisenhower to visit Russia the following year. Eisenhower agreed.
Khrushchev insisted on flying to the United States in an experimental jet aircraft, the TU-114, in order to show off advanced Soviet science. Khrushchev's son Sergei, himself a rocket scientist, urged his father to take a more reliable plane, but the Soviet leader insisted. The plane landed at Andrews Air Force Base on Sept. 15 to a large reception and a red carpet.
In his book “K Blows Top: A Cold War Comic Interlude Starring Nikita Khrushchev, America's most unlikely tourist,” historian Peter Carlson noted the Soviet leader's appearance that day: “The dictator of the world’s largest country was a short, fat bald guy with a major pot belly. He was decked out in a black suit, a custom-made white shirt with French cuffs, gold cuff links and a white silk tie with a thin blue stripe running down the center. On his right breast two gold medals glimmered in the sun — the Lenin Peace Prize and the Red Banner of Labor.”
Eisenhower made a speech, followed by Khrushchev, both speaking of peace and cooperation before the leaders entered a Lincoln and made their way toward the White House. A luncheon was held at the Blair House, just across the street from the presidential residence. Henry Cabot Lodge, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, served as Khrushchev's American tour guide.
Khrushchev worked hard to appear unimpressed with American economic power and standards of living. When Eisenhower took the Soviet leader in a helicopter ride above the city, Khrushchev acted largely uninterested, though there was nothing to compare in Russia with the sprawling middle class suburbia and highways filled with private cars. He began to make a habit out of statements such as that while the U.S. was richer and more economically dynamic for the time being, it would not last, and the Soviet Union would soon overtake its rival.
The next day Khrushchev, who had headed the Soviet Union's agricultural department earlier in his career and always claimed a passion for agriculture, met with Ezra Taft Benson, Eisenhower's secretary of agriculture and at the time a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The meeting at a research farm in Beltsville, Maryland, was cordial. Benson shared with Khrushchev the virtues of capitalist agriculture, then the two men, accompanied by a small army of reporters and photographers, went outside to inspect cattle and turkeys. All the while, Khrushchev did little to hide his contempt for the American way of doing things.
Khrushchev then toured the country, starting with New York City and Franklin D. Roosevelt's home at Hyde Park. He went on to visit a farm in Iowa and movie studios in Los Angles. While in California, he met Hollywood stars Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe. Finally, he returned to Washington, D.C., for the talks with Eisenhower.
Khrushchev was a little insulted when Eisenhower invited him to hold the talks at Camp David, thinking it a simple country home, not unlike his own dacha back in the USSR. When it was explained to him that Camp David was an important presidential residence, his indignation cooled. The talks went on for three days, with the two leaders discussing Berlin and other issues by day, and watching Western movies at night.
In the book, “Eisenhower in War and Peace,” biographer Jean Edward Smith wrote: “The talks between Eisenhower and Khrushchev were substantive, covering the full range of issues, but ultimately unproductive. No solutions were forthcoming, but the fact that the meetings were held helped lower the temperature in East-West relations. In effect, Ike and Khrushchev agreed to disagree, and found they had more in common than met the eye.”
After Khrushchev departed, everyone fully expected Eisenhower to be invited to the Soviet Union the following year. The May 1960 crash of Gary Francis Powers and his U2 spy plane in Russia dashed any hope for Eisenhower's reciprocal visit. Khrushchev denounced Eisenhower and the United States as untrustworthy after the incident, and no such meeting ever took place.
In August 1961, Khrushchev and Ulbricht normalized the Berlin situation by building the Berlin Wall, which cut off access from East Berlin to West Berlin.
Cody K. Carlson holds a master's in history from the University of Utah and teaches at Salt Lake Community College. An avid player of board games, he blogs at thediscriminatinggamer.com. Email: ckcarlson76@gmail.com